Exosomes biological significance: A concise review

Exosomes were initially thought to be a mechanism for removing unneeded membrane proteins from reticulocytes. Current Studies have shown that the process of exosome formation extends to many mammalian cells. This concise review highlights the findings reported at a Workshop on Exosomes. Full knowledge of the contribution of exosomes to intercellular information transmission and the potential medical application of this knowledge will depend on the ingenuity of future investigators and their insight into biological processes. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.